Detecting Fire and Grazing Patterns in Tallgrass Prairie Using Spectral Mixture Analysis

Global grasslands are typically under management practices (such as fire and grazing) that alter nutrient cycling, ecosystem composition, and distribution of organic matter from the unmanaged condition. We evaluated landscape-level response to fire and grazing treatments in the Konza Tallgrass Prairie Research Natural Area, Kansas, using spectral mixture analysis of Airborne Visible/Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (AVIRIS) data acquired 31 August 1990. Spectral mixture analysis derives the fractional abundances of spectrally unique components in the landscape. The reflectance spectra of these components are called endmembers. Endmember fractions values were compared against ground values of live biomass, current standing dead biomass, and litter for 12 watersheds. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was performed on 37 watersheds with known burning and grazing histories for each of the remote sensing variables. Seven endmembers were selected from the AVIRIS data using a manual endmember selection method: nonphotosynthetic vegetation (NPV), soil, rock, shade, and three green vegetation endmembers (GV1, GV2, and GV3). Each vegetation endmember correlated differently to biomass measurements and revealed unique relationships to management treatments. From regressions, ANOVAs, and image analysis, these three endmembers were inferred to represent canopy vertical structure or leaf area index (LAI), greenness, and fractional cover of grass, respectively. There was a stronger relationship between the sum of GV1 and GV3 fractions and live grass biomass values than there was with the (unsummed) individual fractions. In an ANOVA, the sum separated both burn and grazing treatments as well as the treatment interaction. The NPV fraction was strongly correlated with ground measurements of litter and standing dead biomass, and significantly separated burn treatments. The soil fraction differentiated grazing treatments, and analysis of the soil fraction image revealed a spatial coherence of grazing patterns along drainages. Similar analyses were perfomed on the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), a commonly used two-band index computed from red and near-infrared reflectance. NDVI, shown in previous studies to estimate the fraction of photosynthetically active radiation absorbed by green vegetation (FPAR), was a poor indicator of canopy biomass, but it successfully separated fire treatments. Broad-scale assessment of the state and structure of managed grassland systems requires the identification of several indicator variables. Spectral mixture analysis, unlike NDVI, not only separated treatments but also allowed for the identification of five remotely sensible factors affected by the management treatments, namely, vertical structure, percentage cover or patchiness, greenness, and distribution of soil and litter

A comparison of spectral mixture analysis an NDVI for ascertaining ecological variables

In this study, we compare the performance of spectral mixture analysis to the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) in detecting change in a grassland across topographically-induced nutrient gradients and different management schemes. The Konza Prairie Research Natural Area, Kansas, is a relatively homogeneous tallgrass prairie in which change in vegetation productivity occurs with respect to topographic positions in each watershed. The area is the site of long-term studies of the influence of fire and grazing on tallgrass production and was the site of the First ISLSCP (International Satellite Land Surface Climatology Project) Field Experiment (FIFE) from 1987 to 1989. Vegetation indices such as NDVI are commonly used with imagery collected in few (less than 10) spectral bands. However, the use of only two bands (e.g. NDVI) does not adequately account for the complex of signals making up most surface reflectance. Influences from background spectral variation and spatial heterogeneity may confound the direct relationship with biological or biophysical variables. High dimensional multispectral data allows for the application position of techniques such as derivative analysis and spectral curve fitting, thereby increasing the probability of successfully modeling the reflectance from mixed surfaces. The higher number of bands permits unmixing of a greater number of surface components, separating the vegetation signal for further analyses relevant to biological variables

Growth factors for clinical-scale expansion of human articular chondrocytes : Relevance for automated bioreactor systems

The expansion of chondrocytes in automated bioreactors for clinical use requires that a relevant number of cells be generated, starting from variable initial seeding densities in one passage and using autologous serum. We investigated whether the growth factor combination transforming growth factor beta 1/fibroblast growth factor 2/platelet-derived growth factor BB (TFP), recently shown to enhance the proliferation capacity of human articular chondrocytes (HACs), allows the efficiency of chondrocyte use to be increased at different seeding densities and percentages of human serum (HS). HACs were seeded at 1,000, 5,000, and 10,000 celIS/cm(2) in medium containing 10 bovine serum or 10,000 cells/cm(2) with 1 chondrogenic capacity of post-expanded HACs was then assessed in pellet cultures. Expansion with TFP allowed a sufficient number of HACs to be obtained in one passage even at the lowest seeding density and HS percentage and variability in cartilage-forming capacity of HACs expanded under the different conditions to be reduced. Instead, larger variations and insufficient yields were found in the absence of TFP. By allowing large numbers of cells to be obtained, starting from a wide range of initial seeding densities and HS percentages, the use of TFP may represent a viable solution for the efficient expansion of HACs and addresses constraints of automated clinical bioreactor systems

Componentes menores y estabilidad a la oxidación mediante DSC de aceite de colza fraccionado y estructurado mediante catálisis con lipasa

Natural fats and oils can be modified by various methods to prepare products with desired physical, chemical and nutritional properties. The enrichment and retention of the minor lipid components, the incorporation of capric acid and oxidative stability in low temperature fractionated rapeseed oil (RSO) in acetone were assessed in this study. The fractionated liquid part (L-RSO), the solid part (S-RSO) and the RSO were transesterified with capric acid (CA) at different mole ratios using lipase. The yields of L-RSO and S-RSO were 30 and 70 g per 100 g, respectively. The L-RSO contained higher levels of linoleic acid and linolenic acid, and a lower level of oleic acid compared to the S-RSO. The S-RSO contained a higher amount of total sterols than the RSO and the L-RSO. In contrast, the L-RSO contained a higher amount of total tocopherols than the RSO and the S-RSO. The incorporation of CA was ideal at a mole ratio of 1:3. The content of sterols and tocopherols gradually decreased with an increased mole ratio for the CA incorporation. The oxidative stability shown as onset temperature, determined by DSC, of the S-RSO was higher compared to those of the L-RSO and RSO.Las grasas y aceites naturales pueden ser modificados mediante diversos métodos para preparar productos con propiedades físicas, químicas y nutricionales deseadas. El enriquecimiento y la retención de componentes lipídicos menores, la incorporación de ácido cáprico y estabilidad a la oxidación a baja temperatura de aceites de colza (RSO) fraccionado en acetona, se evaluaron en este estudio. La fracción líquida (L-RSO), la fracción sólida (S-RSO) y el RSO son transesterificados con ácido cáprico (CA) en diversas relaciones molares utilizando lipasa. Los rendimientos de las fracciones L-RSO y RSO-S fueron de 30 y 70 g por 100 g, respectivamente. La fracción líquida L-RSO contenía un mayor nivel de los ácidos linoleico y linolénico, y un menor nivel de ácido oleico en comparación con la fracción sólida S-RSO. La fracción sólida S-RSO tiene mayor contenido total de esteroles que RSO y que L-RSO. En contraste, la fracción L-RSO contenía mayor contenido de tocoferoles totales que RSO y que S-RSO. La incorporación de CA fue excelente con una relación molar de 1:3. El contenido de esteroles y tocoferoles disminuyó gradualmente con un incremento de la relación molar de la incorporación de CA. La estabilidad oxidativa muestra cómo la temperatura de inicio, determinada mediante DSC, de la fracción S-RSO fue mayor en comparación con la de la L-RSO y RSO

Re-analysis of the Levanluhta skeletal material : Sex and stature estimation of individuals in an Iron Age water burial in Finland

Levanluhta, an Iron Age water burial site in Finland, and its material consisting of commingled skeletal remains and artifacts, has been studied by several researchers over the past 100 years, resulting in multiple interpretations of the people and the site. Previous skeletal analyses have concluded that the majority of the individuals represented in the remains were females and children and were of relatively short stature, so possibly nutritionally deprived. This study re-analyzed the commingled adult human remains with updated methods. The methods applied in this study to estimate sex and stature were based on more representative European reference samples than the previously applied methods. The methods included morphology, osteometrics, and computed tomography (CT) scans. Our results indicated that depending on the reference data, the majority of the individual adult bones including os coxae (73%, n = 45) and long bones (humerus 83%-89%, n = 52; radius 72%-89%, n = 47; ulna 50%-65%, n = 58; femur 92%-100%, n = 25; tibia 77%-85%, n = 26) were classified as females based on their size and morphology. The cross-sectional bone properties of humerii, femora, and tibiae visualized using CT scanning also supported these findings. However, the cranial morphology did not show as clear female-biased sex ratio as other methods (42% females, 33% males, 24% undetermined, n = 33). In females, the mean stature based on the tibia (155.3 cm, n = 10) was within the range of the coeval European females and did not necessarily indicate nutritional deprivation, which is in line with previously published stable isotope findings from the site. The mean stature based on the tibia suggested that the Levanluhta males were short (164.0 cm, n = 3), but final interpretations were limited due to the small number of male individuals. The current study affirmed that the Levanluhta skeletal assemblage was female biased and gave new insights into interpretation of the stature.Peer reviewe

Clinical effectiveness of a sedation protocol minimizing benzodiazepine infusions and favoring early dexmedetomidine: A before-after study

INTRODUCTION: Randomized controlled trials suggest clinical outcomes may be improved with dexmedetomidine as compared to benzodiazepines, however further study and validation is needed. The objective of this study was to determine the clinical effectiveness of a sedation protocol minimizing benzodiazepine use in favor of early dexmedetomidine. METHODS: This was a before-after study including adult surgical and medical ICU patients requiring mechanical ventilation and continuous sedation for at least 24 hours. The before phase included consecutive patients admitted between April 1 and August 31, 2011. Subsequently, the protocol was modified to minimize use of benzodiazepines in favor of early dexmedetomidine through a multidisciplinary approach and staff education was provided. The after phase included consecutive eligible patients between May 1 and October 31, 2012. RESULTS: 199 patients were included, with 97 patients in the before and 102 in the after phase. Baseline characteristics were well balanced between groups. Use of midazolam as initial sedation (58% vs. 27%, p \u3c 0.0001) or at any point during the ICU stay (76% vs. 48%, p \u3c 0.0001) was significantly reduced in the after phase. Dexmedetomidine use as initial sedation (2% vs. 39%, p \u3c 0.0001) or at any point during the ICU stay (39% vs. 82%, p \u3c 0.0001) significantly increased. Both the prevalence (81% vs. 93%, p =0.013) and median percent of days with delirium (55% (IQR 18-83) vs. 71% (IQR 45-100), p = 0.001) were increased in the after phase. The median duration of mechanical ventilation was significantly reduced in the after phase (110 (IQR 59-192) vs. 74.5 (IQR 42-148) hrs, p = 0.029) and significantly fewer patients required tracheostomy (20% vs. 9%, p = 0.040). The median ICU length of stay was 8 (IQR 4-12) days in the before phase and 6 (IQR 3-11) days in the after phase (p = 0.252). CONCLUSIONS: Implementing a sedation protocol that targeted light sedation and reduced benzodiazepine use led to significant improvements in the duration of mechanical ventilation and requirement for tracheostomy despite increases in the prevalence and duration of ICU delirium

Cyberinfrastructure Deployments on Public Research Clouds Enable Accessible Environmental Data Science Education

Modern science depends on computers, but not all scientists have access to the scale of computation they need. A digital divide separates scientists who accelerate their science using large cyberinfrastructure from those who do not, or who do not have access to the compute resources or learning opportunities to develop the skills needed. The exclusionary nature of the digital divide threatens equity and the future of innovation by leaving people out of the scientific process while over-amplifying the voices of a small group who have resources. However, there are potential solutions: recent advancements in public research cyberinfrastructure and resources developed during the open science revolution are providing tools that can help bridge this divide. These tools can enable access to fast and powerful computation with modest internet connections and personal computers. Here we contribute another resource for narrowing the digital divide: scalable virtual machines running on public cloud infrastructure. We describe the tools, infrastructure, and methods that enabled successful deployment of a reproducible and scalable cyberinfrastructure architecture for a collaborative data synthesis working group in February 2023. This platform enabled 45 scientists with varying data and compute skills to leverage 40,000 hours of compute time over a 4-day workshop. Our approach provides an open framework that can be replicated for educational and collaborative data synthesis experiences in any data- and compute-intensive discipline

Free energy barrier for melittin reorientation from a membrane-bound state to a transmembrane state

An important step in a phospholipid membrane pore formation by melittin antimicrobial peptide is a reorientation of the peptide from a surface into a transmembrane conformation. In this work we perform umbrella sampling simulations to calculate the potential of mean force (PMF) for the reorientation of melittin from a surface-bound state to a transmembrane state and provide a molecular level insight into understanding peptide and lipid properties that influence the existence of the free energy barrier. The PMFs were calculated for a peptide to lipid (P/L) ratio of 1/128 and 4/128. We observe that the free energy barrier is reduced when the P/L ratio increased. In addition, we study the cooperative effect; specifically we investigate if the barrier is smaller for a second melittin reorientation, given that another neighboring melittin was already in the transmembrane state. We observe that indeed the barrier of the PMF curve is reduced in this case, thus confirming the presence of a cooperative effect

Nuorten avomuotoinen OPI-mielenterveyskuntoutus : Koettu hyöty ja vaikuttavuus sekä kuntoutusmallin soveltuvuus

OPI-hankkeen tarkoituksena oli kehittää avomuotoista kuntoutusmallia ammatillisessa koulutuksessa oleville 16–25-vuotiaille opiskelijoille, joilla oli diagnosoitu masennus- ja/tai ahdistuneisuushäiriö. Kuntoutusmallilla pyrittiin tukemaan nuoria elämänhallinnassa ja opiskelussa, vahvistamaan nuoren toimintakykyä ja hyvinvointia sekä vähentämään mielenterveysongelmiin liittyviä haittoja. Vuosina 2011–2013 toteutettiin yhteensä kahdeksan avomuotoista ryhmäkuntoutuskurssia, joihin kuului myös yksilökäyntejä sekä verkostotapaamisia. Kurssit kestivät seurantoineen noin 1,5 vuotta ja ne toteutettiin lukukausien aikana. OPI-hankkeen yhteydessä toteutettiin arviointitutkimus, jonka tavoite oli selvittää kuntoutusmallin koettua hyötyä ja vaikuttavuutta, sidosryhmäyhteistyötä sekä kuntoutusmallin soveltuvuutta vakiintuneeksi toiminnaksi. Tutkimukseen osallistui 70 kuntoutujaa. Aineistoa kerättiin kyselylomakkeilla sekä eri tahojen haastatteluilla (kuntoutujat, projektiryhmät). Kuntoutuksen ja opiskelujen yhteen nivominen onnistui enimmäkseen hyvin. Ryhmässä saatu vertaistuki koettiin kuntoutuksen suurimmaksi anniksi. Seuranta-aikana nuorten masennusoireet vähenivät, elämänlaatu, itse arvioitu terveydentila sekä opiskelukyky ja kognitiivinen toimintakyky kohentuivat. Nuoret olisivat kuitenkin tarvinneet kuntoutusta jo varhaisemmassa vaiheessa. Noin kolme nuorta neljästä arvioi, että oli saavuttanut kuntoutukselle asettamansa tavoitteet vähintään melko hyvin. Tavoitteiden saavuttaminen ja kuntoutuksen koettu vaikuttavuus olivat yhteydessä kuntoutuksen oikea-aikaisuuteen, yhteistyöhön hoitavan tahon sekä opiskeluterveydenhuollon kanssa sekä vuorovaikutuksen onnistumiseen ohjaajan ja nuoren välillä. Tutkimuksen tulokset antavat varsin rohkaisevan kuvan oppilaitoksen kanssa yhteistyössä toimivan ja opintojen kanssa yhteen sovitetun kuntoutuksen mahdollisuuksista nuorten syrjäytymisen ehkäisemisessä